All future RECON students must attend a Basic RECON Course, or BRC, taught at the School of Infantry (SOI) West RECON Training Company in Camp Pendleton, California. The course consists of three phases:
- Phase 1 is four weeks long and focuses on Marine individual physical skills such as running, high-repetition PT, obstacle courses, ocean swims with fins, rucking, land navigation, helicopter rope suspension training, communications and supporting arms.
- Phase 2 is three weeks long and concentrates on small unit tactics, mission planning and includes a nine-day exercise in full mission profiles.
- Phase 3 is two weeks and focuses on the maritime mission. Held in Coronado, California, the Marine will conduct amphibious reconnaissance, boat operations and nautical navigation.
Once you have qualified as a RECON Marine with the 0321 MOS, you will have the opportunity to attend many advanced training courses within the USMC as well as other service's Special Operations training programs, such as:
USMC combatant diver course
USMC scout sniper
Navy survival, evasion, resistance and escape training (SERE)
Army Airborne School/jump master training
Army military free fall/jump master training
Army Ranger School
Army pathfinder course
And many other SOCOM, Army and Navy Special Warfare Schools
RECON battalions remained as part of the USMC divisions and continue to perform missions for the deployed USMC commander. BRC is open to Marines and Navy hospital corpsman.
Once you complete your training, the following RECON commands will become your new home:
• 1st Recon Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton
• Force Recon Company, 1st Recon Battalion
• Force Recon Company, 2nd Recon Battalion
• 2nd Recon Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
• 3rd Recon Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, Okinawa, Japan
• 4th Recon Battalion (reserve), San Antonio
• 3rd Force Recon Company (reserve), Mobile, Alabama
• 4th Force Recon Company (reserve), Alameda, California
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